Amazon is considering creating its own TV service

Amazon is considering creating its own online TV service,
according to
Bloomberg.

The company is said to have reached out to CBS and NBC Universal
about including their channels.

The talks are in preliminary stages, according to the report.

Dan Rayburn, a principal analyst for Frost &
Sullivan,
first reported on Tuesdaythat Amazon had been talking
to content owners about licensing content for a live streaming
service.

Amazon already has its own on-demand video service, Amazon Prime
Instant Video, which offers TV shows and movies for streaming.

What Bloomberg's report is describing, however, sounds more like
a TV service that could allow Amazon to compete with TV providers
such as Comcast.

The news comes as reports have suggested that Apple has been in
talks to create its own TV service as well. Apple was initially
expected to launch its service this fall, but now the launch is
said to
have been delayed until next year as talks with content
providers are moving slowly, according to Bloomberg.

It's another indication that the TV industry is moving away from
traditional cable bundles and toward online streaming services.
Last month, for instance, statistics from Nielsen suggested
there
was a sharp drop in ratings for returning drama series, as
Ad Age reported.

Linear TV has been on an amazing 50-year run. Internet TV is
starting to grow. Clearly over the next 20 years Internet TV is
going to replace linear TV. And so I think everyone is scrambling
to figure out how do they do great apps, how do they [do] things
like "Noggin" which are fantastic. That will just keep getting
built up and so it's a transition into figuring out the Internet.